18Author's Note: I don't own Bleach. This story is an original idea, and one I hope makes for a great plot! If you're reading please take a moment after this chapter, or any to follow, and drop me a review letting me know what you think. Thank you, and enjoy!
ICHIGO'S APPRENTICE
Chapter 1
It was the dead of night in Karakura Town. Things were so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. For one human in particular, this would be the last night of her normal existence. From this point on, nothing would ever be the same. Had she known this prior to the events, she would have maybe treasured the moments she had with her best friend more.
Tatsuki Arisawa exited her karate dojo after a late night training session. The black haired and blue haired tomboy was promptly greeted by her best friend in the entire world, Orihime Inoue. It was cold outside, but there wasn't a temperature low enough that could chill the warmth in Tatsuki's heart when she was around Orihime.
"Tatsuki!" Orihime exclaimed as she rushed towards the martial artist with arms wide open. The very well-endowed girl with long red hair and big brown eyes embraced her friend with a massive hug, holding her as if the two hadn't seen each other in years. In reality, they went out for ice cream yesterday afternoon. "Oh Tatsuki it's so good to see you! You know, I got a little worried when you were a little late and then I started thinking, "Oh no what if Tatsuki got seriously injured in her training session", but then I remembered how amazing you are and how nobody can beat you so I was comforted and that's when you came out, and here you are!"
"You're so gentle." Tatsuki said with a sigh, as she patted Orihime's back softly, slightly upset that she made her best friend worry. "I just stayed after with my sensei learning a few new moves. It was nothing. Now, did you want to go see that movie?"
"Oh yes!" Orihime spoke enthusiastically as the two seventeen year old girls walked down the street towards the theatre. "I think you'll really like this movie! It's about a killer beaver who is on the run from the rest of the forest creatures who are trying to bring him to justice when suddenly he meets a female raccoon and falls in love with her, which is what he needs to start changing his ways. But the problem is the rest of the forest creatures want to take him out so they kidnap the raccoon and…"
Orihime's long winded excited explanation of the children's movie stopped abruptly as her carefree fun expression changed to a serious and concerned one as she quickly turned around and looked up towards the horizon. Tatsuki also felt a twinge in her stomach, as if something nasty was present and she turned and looked down the street as well.
"What is that?" Tatsuki asked, not knowing what this feeling was that she was having.
"You feel it too?" Orihime asked, "I don't know…but it doesn't feel good at all."
Suddenly there was a gust of wind that the two girls felt on their face and in front of them stood a man. He had spikey purple hair, dark bright red eyes and he wore a crimson scarf that covered his mouth and was dressed with a dark blue tunic and black pants. At his side he had a sword, which Orihime quickly recognized was a Zanpakuto.
"Are you…" Orihime asked slowly and carefully, "Are you from the soul society?
The man's face had a malicious grin as he responded while drawing his blade. "Not quite."
"Orihime watch out!" Tatsuki grabbed her best friend's arm and tried to pull her back. "He's got a sword, it's not safe here!"
"Stand back, Tatsuki!" Orihime spoke, as she looked at her friend with more seriousness in her eyes then Tatsuki had ever witnessed. "I'll protect you!"
And with great force, for the first time in her life, Orihime pushed Tatsuki back. The girl who was the second greatest martial arts warrior in Japan fell to the ground and hit the wall of a nearby building. After recovering quickly from the pain Tatsuki sat and watched in shock as Orihime touched the side of her head with a finger.
Suddenly the unknown assailant swung his blade towards Orihime, but a bright orange triangular energy shield appeared in front of her that deflected the blade. The purple haired man jumped back as the shield dissipated. Tatsuki was confused, did Orihime create that energy shield? When could she ever do that?
The action didn't stop there. Suddenly, with her hand still close to her head Orihime closed her eyes and muttered the words, "I reject" as two yellow beams of light appeared in the air and zigzagged towards the sworded warrior. With great speed the man deflected both beams and Tatsuki watched as two miniature fairylike creatures fell from the air. Who were they, she wondered?
"Run like the wind, Osafu!" The man spoke, as his blade transformed appearance from a typical sword to one with the hilt of a gun, and a much sharper looking blade. His entire body was now surrounded with wind.
"Tatsuki run!" Orihime turned and yelled to her best friend, her voice full of panic. Tatsuki tried to get up to pull the orange haired girl with her as she escaped, but her body couldn't move.
"I will have to finish this quickly!" The man spoke as power radiated through his body.
There was no warning, no threat, and no dialogue to prepare Tatsuki what she saw next. In the movies, you see a flashback of memories, and you have an hour or so to prepare for the death of a major character. In life, it just happens with time for you to be prepared. If she was honest with herself, there isn't enough time on earth that would have prepared Tatsuki Arisawa for this terrible moment.
The man's blade detached from the gun hilt and was held together by a long chain. The blade zoomed forward light a lightning bolt and went straight through Orihime's chest. The sweet girl gasped in pain, as blood spewed out of her mouth and her body as she fell back and hit the pavement. There were no last words, no good byes…Orihime laid on the ground motionless, her lifeless head turned staring towards her best friend.
Tatsuki screamed in agony as her eyes filled with tears. Her body begun to radiate with red energy as she was slowly able to stand up and push through whatever pressure was holding her back. She didn't know what it was she was feeling. Perhaps the word was, rage? Tatsuki's rage was giving her energy to push past the force this man generated to keep her at bay. Before she could rush towards her best friend's murderer, there was another flash and before her eyes stood another man with orange hair, odd black garb, and a long black blade.
Tatsuki couldn't believe her eyes as she recognized the man as Ichigo Kurosaki, another friend of hers and Orihime.
"You bastard…" Ichigo yelled at the mysterious assassin as he noticed the lifeless body in front of him, "What the hell did Orihime do to you? How could you kill her like that out of cold blood! You will pay!"
Ichigo moved quicker then Tatsuki could even see to clash blades with the evil man. The two's swords clanged against each other as they flew in a circle above the street. Each moving at incredible speeds, there was no exclamation for what Tatsuki was witnessing. She ran to Orihime's corpse and convinced herself that her best friend wasn't dead.
"Orihime get up!" She yelled as she shook the body, "Get up, we have to get out of her!"
The body was lifeless.
"Come on Orihime!" Tatsuki shouted, tears falling from her eyes, "I need you, don't leave me!"
The body was still lifeless.
Tatsuki wailed in misery as her head fell and the tears became uncontrollable. Meanwhile in the sky the battle stopped as the mysterious man found himself out of breath. His mission was not yet complete. He looked down at the girls body whose life he just took. IT was still inside the body. While one hand held his blade, Osafu, the other hand was covered in a mystical gauntlet with strange powers. He reached out his hand and focused his spiritual energy. The gauntlet begun to surround itself with a black aura. Ichigo stopped his assault, having no idea what was going on.
Back on the ground Tatsuki felt Orihime's body become very warm as it began to be surrounded by dark red light and float into the sky.
"The body of this girl is of no consequence to me!" The man yelled at Ichigo and Tatsuki, "What I desire is inside."
The two gasped as a large hole tore from the inside of Orhime's body. Blood squirted out of the lifeless corpse and inside the pool of blood the two humans noticed a blood red stone that flew into the gauntleted hand of the assassin. He smiled and looked back at Ichigo.
"You're the substitute soul reaper aren't you?" He spoke to Ichigo, "The one who stopped Aizen, the bounts, and even brought the soul society to its feet at one point to save just one girl."
"I am." Ichigo spoke, his eyes filled with hatred, "But none of that is going to compare to what I am going to do to you."
"I'm sorry," he said with a cocky grin, "But not even you will be able to stop what is about to happen next. I must leave, but I am sure we will meet again."
"You're not going anywhere!" Ichigo screamed as he rush towards his enemy.
"Bankai!" The masked man spoke as he held his blade to the air. Ichigo suddenly stopped as he man's body was covered in powerful wind that swirled around his body.
And within a matter of seconds, the assassin was gone and left no trace. Orhime's body fell to the ground and Ichigo flash stepped to under it and caught his dead friend, a tear falling from his eye now. He turned and looked at Tatsuki who had fainted from emotional exhaustion. In the past, when she witnessed things like this, Ichigo was able to leave her and take care of the supernatural problem and assume it wouldn't impact his friend at all. This time was different for two reasons. First, this was the loss of Orihime they were dealing with. Ichigo knew he couldn't hide this from Tatsuki. Second, and much more strange, the immense spiritual pressure he felt that led him to this location…Ichigo was certain it wasn't the murderer, it definitely came from Tatsuki. Who was she that she had such unspeakable power? It was only for an instant, but for a moment Ichigo felt power that rivaled even that of the power he experienced when dealing with Aizen.
Ichigo sighed as he picked up both bodies and prepared to run to a safe spot with the girls. He hated himself for failing Orihime, but now it was time for him to be there for Tatsuki. The night was over, but this nightmare that begun this evening was far from ending.